Community banks added 360 new branches during 2023. They were spread out among more than 300 banks, so the majority netted just one new branch. Those that opened two or more and are also rated either 5-Stars or 4-Stars by Bauer, can be found on page 5 of this week's Jumbo Rate News.

The majority of these banks listed are growing their branch networks the old fashioned way, brick by brick, which is why most have just one new location. They are all growing to improve service to their communities.

New Community Bank Branches Popping Up

With a population of approximately 17,000, Ben Hill County is located in South Central Georgia. Over half of  its residents reside in Fitzgerald, the county seat. History buffs may be familiar with Fitzgerald for the Blue and Gray Museum that pays homage to the civil war and those who lost their lives there... on both sides.

In fact, Fitzgerald is known as a place of reconciliation among (and for) Civil War veterans and their families. Within this enclave of history also lives a truly unique slice of the American Dream.

This weekend, in fact, the annual Wild Chicken Festival will be held in the historic downtown. As the story goes, Georgia stocked the state with flocks of beautiful Burmese chickens back in the 1960s to give residents another choice of game to hunt.

No one knows why, but for some reason the birds (all of them) found their way to Fitzgerald and made it their home. Some residents love the birds; others wish they would go away. There is little doubt, however, that these small chickens have made an indelible mark and are now an integral part of the town.

Why are we telling you this? Because, this is small town USA. Only three banks have branches in Fitzgerald:  two are sponsors of the Chicken Festival; all three are community banks. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2022), an estimated 26.5% of the population of Ben Hill County live at or below the poverty line.

It’s not a place where a bank can make lots of money. That’s why Big Banks stay away, and always have. That’s okay. These three community banks are doing just fine.

5-Star Colony Bank of Fitzgerald, GA is not only a sponsor of the Wild Chicken Festival, it also spends time preparing local youth for the job market. Like the other two, it is a true community-focused bank.

Colony Bank is not a stranger to acquisitions (its latest was in 2021) but more recently, it has expanded its brick and mortar presence organically, opening two new offices in calendar 2023.

These new branches are a bit outside of Colony Bank’s historic stomping ground: one is in Atlanta’s Fulton County and the other in Macon (in Bibb County). The bank will face more competition in these cities, but much of it is from out-of-state and/or Big Banks. We believe it will find a nice niche for itself as a new local community bank, even in the big city of Atlanta.

Colony Bank is one of 49 recommended community banks (rated 5-Stars or 4-Stars) that added two or more branches last year. (They can all be found on page 5.) With these new additions, Colony Bank of Fitzgerald now operates through 30 offices spanning 21 counties in Georgia.

Fun Fact: 

The state of Georgia contains 159 counties, that’s second only to the state of Texas, which has 254.

Most of the banks found on page 5 are growing their branch networks the old fashioned way, brick by brick, but there are exceptions. During 2023, 5-Star Bank of Princeton, NJ for example, opened one new branch organically and also acquired Noah Bank of Elkins Park, PA with its branches.

Princeton Bancorp, the parent of Bank of Princeton, recently announced it will also acquire Cornerstone Financial Corporation, along with 4-Star Cornerstone Bank, Mount Laurel, NJ. Established in 1999, Cornerstone Bank has six branch offices located in Burlington County (3), Camden County (2) and Gloucester County (1); all in New Jersey.

Cornerstone witnessed an 8% growth in assets during calendar 2023 which brought its total assets to $319.5 million. Its loans grew at the slightly faster rate of 10.2% and while its loan quality is good, it has much more commercial real estate (CRE) in its portfolio than its peers (54.4% versus 35.1%).

Bank of Princeton, conversely, is a 21st century bank. Established in 2007, it currently operates through 30 offices and has total assets exceeding $1.9 billion (over $1.5 billion of which, is loans). Loan quality at Bank of Princeton is stellar, but it too, has much more CRE exposure than its peers.

Both Bank of Princeton and Cornerstone Bank earned satisfactory ratings on their latest Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) exams, and there is no branch overlap so all systems appear to be go. We will be keeping a close eye on those CRE loans though.

Another, 5-Star Bank of Zachary, LA was established in 1904 and, aside from moving down the road on Main Street (twice) not much has changed in the past 120 years. In 1977, it opened a new branch in Zachary. Nineteen years later (1996) it opened its third location (and first outside of Zachary) in Baton Rouge. Today, after opening two new offices last year, it has five full-service offices and an ATM at Lane Regional Medical Center.

That Medical Center is among many entities that enjoy the support a true community bank, like Bank of Zachary, has to offer. The local school system and chamber of commerce are also big beneficiaries.

With the two new branches last year, Bank of Zachary saw an 11.4% jump in assets. Close to 60% of that was in loans. Almost half of its loan portfolio is residential real estate while less than 27% is CRE. Construction and land development take up the third largest chunk  with 17%. As a true community bank, loans made to help the community equal 100%.